Station Eleven

People who bought this also bought...

The Glass Hotel

A Novel

By:
Emily St. John Mandel

Narrated by:
Dylan Moore

Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
607

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
538

Story

4 out of 5 stars
538

Vincent is a bartender at the Hotel Caiette, a five-star lodging on the northernmost tip of Vancouver Island. On the night she meets Jonathan Alkaitis, a hooded figure scrawls a message on the lobby's glass wall: "Why don't you swallow broken glass." High above Manhattan, a greater crime is committed: Alkaitis is running an international Ponzi scheme, moving imaginary sums of money through clients' accounts. When the financial empire collapses, it obliterates countless fortunes and devastates lives. Vincent, who had been posing as Jonathan's wife, walks away into the night.

4 out of 5 stars

Not a mystery

By
Sandi from Oregon
on
03-28-20

Last Night in Montreal

By:
Emily St. John Mandel

Narrated by:
Alyssa Bresnahan

Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
70

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
61

Story

4 out of 5 stars
60

When Lilia Albert was a child, her father appeared on the doorstep of her mother's house and took her away. Now, haunted by an inability to remember much about her early childhood, Lilia moves restlessly from city to city, abandoning lovers and eluding the private detective who has dedicated a career to following close behind. Then comes Eli.

4 out of 5 stars

Something reslly different

By
Donna
on
03-21-16

The End of October

A Novel

By:
Lawrence Wright

Narrated by:
Mark Bramhall

Length: 13 hrs and 26 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
633

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
570

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
564

At an internment camp in Indonesia, 47 people are pronounced dead with acute hemorrhagic fever. When Henry Parsons - microbiologist, epidemiologist - travels there on behalf of the World Health Organization to investigate, what he finds will soon have staggering repercussions across the globe: an infected man is on his way to join the millions of worshippers in the annual Hajj to Mecca. Now, Henry joins forces with a Saudi prince and doctor in an attempt to quarantine the entire host of pilgrims in the holy city....

5 out of 5 stars

Powerful. prophetic, with the heros we need

By
tina
on
04-30-20

Severance

A Novel

By:
Ling Ma

Narrated by:
Nancy Wu

Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
650

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
587

Story

4 out of 5 stars
585

Candace Chen, a millennial drone self-sequestered in a Manhattan office tower, is devoted to routine. With the recent passing of her Chinese immigrant parents, she’s had her fill of uncertainty. She’s content just to carry on: She goes to work, troubleshoots the teen-targeted Gemstone Bible, watches movies in a Greenpoint basement with her boyfriend. So Candace barely notices when a plague of biblical proportions sweeps New York.

3 out of 5 stars

4.08 stars

By
ibillinsly@gmail
on
12-06-18

The Lola Quartet

By:
Emily St. John Mandel

Narrated by:
Sarah Scott

Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
50

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
45

Story

4 out of 5 stars
45

Gavin Sasaki was a promising young journalist in New York City until the day he was fired for plagiarism. The last thing he wants is to sell foreclosed real estate for his sister Eilo's company in their Florida hometown, but he's in no position to refuse her job offer. Plus, there's another reason to go home: Eilo recently met a 10-year-old girl who looks very much like Gavin and has the same last name as his high-school girlfriend, Anna, who left town abruptly after graduation.

5 out of 5 stars

wanted a longer commute so i could hear more!

By
Jasmine Scott
on
03-10-18

Wanderers

A Novel

By:
Chuck Wendig

Narrated by:
Dominic Hoffman,
Xe Sands

Length: 32 hrs and 22 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
1,818

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,719

Story

4 out of 5 stars
1,716

Shana wakes up one morning to discover her little sister in the grip of a strange malady. She appears to be sleepwalking. She cannot talk and cannot be woken up. And she is heading with inexorable determination to a destination that only she knows. But Shana and her sister are not alone. Soon, they are joined by a flock of sleepwalkers from across America, on the same mysterious journey. And like Shana, there are other "shepherds" who follow the flock to protect their friends and family on the long dark road ahead.

3 out of 5 stars

Recommended, with some issues

By
Allan T. Maule
on
07-29-19

The Glass Hotel

A Novel

By:
Emily St. John Mandel

Narrated by:
Dylan Moore

Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
607

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
538

Story

4 out of 5 stars
538

Vincent is a bartender at the Hotel Caiette, a five-star lodging on the northernmost tip of Vancouver Island. On the night she meets Jonathan Alkaitis, a hooded figure scrawls a message on the lobby's glass wall: "Why don't you swallow broken glass." High above Manhattan, a greater crime is committed: Alkaitis is running an international Ponzi scheme, moving imaginary sums of money through clients' accounts. When the financial empire collapses, it obliterates countless fortunes and devastates lives. Vincent, who had been posing as Jonathan's wife, walks away into the night.

4 out of 5 stars

Not a mystery

By
Sandi from Oregon
on
03-28-20

Last Night in Montreal

By:
Emily St. John Mandel

Narrated by:
Alyssa Bresnahan

Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
70

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
61

Story

4 out of 5 stars
60

When Lilia Albert was a child, her father appeared on the doorstep of her mother's house and took her away. Now, haunted by an inability to remember much about her early childhood, Lilia moves restlessly from city to city, abandoning lovers and eluding the private detective who has dedicated a career to following close behind. Then comes Eli.

4 out of 5 stars

Something reslly different

By
Donna
on
03-21-16

The End of October

A Novel

By:
Lawrence Wright

Narrated by:
Mark Bramhall

Length: 13 hrs and 26 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
633

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
570

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
564

At an internment camp in Indonesia, 47 people are pronounced dead with acute hemorrhagic fever. When Henry Parsons - microbiologist, epidemiologist - travels there on behalf of the World Health Organization to investigate, what he finds will soon have staggering repercussions across the globe: an infected man is on his way to join the millions of worshippers in the annual Hajj to Mecca. Now, Henry joins forces with a Saudi prince and doctor in an attempt to quarantine the entire host of pilgrims in the holy city....

5 out of 5 stars

Powerful. prophetic, with the heros we need

By
tina
on
04-30-20

Severance

A Novel

By:
Ling Ma

Narrated by:
Nancy Wu

Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
650

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
587

Story

4 out of 5 stars
585

Candace Chen, a millennial drone self-sequestered in a Manhattan office tower, is devoted to routine. With the recent passing of her Chinese immigrant parents, she’s had her fill of uncertainty. She’s content just to carry on: She goes to work, troubleshoots the teen-targeted Gemstone Bible, watches movies in a Greenpoint basement with her boyfriend. So Candace barely notices when a plague of biblical proportions sweeps New York.

3 out of 5 stars

4.08 stars

By
ibillinsly@gmail
on
12-06-18

The Lola Quartet

By:
Emily St. John Mandel

Narrated by:
Sarah Scott

Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
50

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
45

Story

4 out of 5 stars
45

Gavin Sasaki was a promising young journalist in New York City until the day he was fired for plagiarism. The last thing he wants is to sell foreclosed real estate for his sister Eilo's company in their Florida hometown, but he's in no position to refuse her job offer. Plus, there's another reason to go home: Eilo recently met a 10-year-old girl who looks very much like Gavin and has the same last name as his high-school girlfriend, Anna, who left town abruptly after graduation.

5 out of 5 stars

wanted a longer commute so i could hear more!

By
Jasmine Scott
on
03-10-18

Wanderers

A Novel

By:
Chuck Wendig

Narrated by:
Dominic Hoffman,
Xe Sands

Length: 32 hrs and 22 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
1,818

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,719

Story

4 out of 5 stars
1,716

Shana wakes up one morning to discover her little sister in the grip of a strange malady. She appears to be sleepwalking. She cannot talk and cannot be woken up. And she is heading with inexorable determination to a destination that only she knows. But Shana and her sister are not alone. Soon, they are joined by a flock of sleepwalkers from across America, on the same mysterious journey. And like Shana, there are other "shepherds" who follow the flock to protect their friends and family on the long dark road ahead.

3 out of 5 stars

Recommended, with some issues

By
Allan T. Maule
on
07-29-19

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

A Hunger Games Novel

By:
Suzanne Collins

Narrated by:
Santino Fontana

Length: 16 hrs and 16 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,402

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,110

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,114

It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the 10th annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to out charm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute. The odds are against him. He’s been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low.

4 out of 5 stars

All about the narrator

By
Dr.
on
05-19-20

The Dog Stars

By:
Peter Heller

Narrated by:
Mark Deakins

Length: 10 hrs and 41 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
3,018

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,716

Story

4 out of 5 stars
2,707

Hig survived the flu that killed everyone he knows. His wife is gone, his friends are dead, he lives in the hangar of a small abandoned airport with his dog, his only neighbor a gun-toting misanthrope. In his 1956 Cessna, Hig flies the perimeter of the airfield or sneaks off to the mountains to fish and to pretend that things are the way they used to be. But when a random transmission somehow beams through his radio, the voice ignites a hope deep inside him that a better life exists beyond the airport.

4 out of 5 stars

Stars Shine Bright

By
Doug
on
08-17-12

Oryx and Crake

By:
Margaret Atwood

Narrated by:
Campbell Scott

Length: 10 hrs and 30 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
6,914

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
5,585

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
5,612

The narrator of Atwood's riveting novel calls himself Snowman. When the story opens, he is sleeping in a tree, wearing an old bedsheet, mourning the loss of his beloved Oryx and his best friend Crake, and slowly starving to death. He searches for supplies in a wasteland where insects proliferate and pigoons and wolvogs ravage the pleeblands, where ordinary people once lived, and the Compounds that sheltered the extraordinary.

4 out of 5 stars

Very Scary Stuff

By
Doug
on
07-21-03

The Stand

By:
Stephen King

Narrated by:
Grover Gardner

Length: 47 hrs and 47 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
46,156

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
41,907

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
41,879

This is the way the world ends: with a nanosecond of computer error in a Defense Department laboratory and a million casual contacts that form the links in a chain letter of death. And here is the bleak new world of the day after: a world stripped of its institutions and emptied of 99 percent of its people. A world in which a handful of panicky survivors choose sides - or are chosen.

4 out of 5 stars

Absorbing But Dated Apocalypse ☄️💥⚰️⚰️⚰️⛪️👁🙏

By
Gretchen SLP
on
10-21-19

If It Bleeds

By:
Stephen King

Narrated by:
Will Patton,
Danny Burstein,
Steven Weber

Length: 15 hrs and 12 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
4,721

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
4,237

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
4,213

From number-one New York Times best-selling author, legendary storyteller, and master of short fiction Stephen King comes an extraordinary collection of four new and compelling novellas - Mr. Harrigan's Phone, The Life of Chuck, Rat, and the title story If It Bleeds - each pulling you into intriguing and frightening places.

5 out of 5 stars

Chapter breakdown of the short stories

By
Jason Sebesta
on
04-23-20

Pretty Girls

By:
Karin Slaughter

Narrated by:
Kathleen Early

Length: 20 hrs

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
17,542

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
16,062

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
16,061

Sisters. Strangers. Survivors. More than twenty years ago, Claire and Lydia's teenaged sister Julia vanished without a trace. The two women have not spoken since, and now their lives could not be more different. Claire is the glamorous trophy wife of an Atlanta millionaire. Lydia, a single mother, dates an ex-con and struggles to make ends meet. But neither has recovered from the horror and heartbreak of their shared loss—a devastating wound that's cruelly ripped open when Claire's husband is killed.

1 out of 5 stars

Disgusting waste of credit

By
moviegal
on
07-21-17

How to Be an Adult in Love

Letting Love in Safely and Showing It Recklessly

By:
David Richo

Narrated by:
Tom Pile

Length: 11 hrs and 35 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
152

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
126

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
122

In this audiobook, Richo offers a fresh perspective on love and relationships - one that focuses not on finding an ideal mate, but on becoming a more loving and realistic person. Drawing on the Buddhist concept of mindfulness,
How to Be an Adult in Relationships explores five hallmarks of mindful loving and how they play a key role in our relationships throughout life: Attention to the present moment; observing, listening, and noticing all the feelings at play in our relationships.

2 out of 5 stars

The hardcopy version would be better

By
RH
on
10-29-16

The Road

By:
Cormac McCarthy

Narrated by:
Tom Stechschulte

Length: 6 hrs and 39 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
15,435

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
11,283

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
11,310

America is a barren landscape of smoldering ashes, devoid of life except for those people still struggling to scratch out some type of existence. Amidst this destruction, a father and his young son walk, always toward the coast, but with no real understanding that circumstances will improve once they arrive. Still, they persevere, and their relationship comes to represent goodness in a world of utter devastation.

4 out of 5 stars

The Road Too Ruined

By
Dubi
on
07-10-19

The Year of the Flood

By:
Margaret Atwood

Narrated by:
Bernadette Dunne,
Katie MacNichol,
Mark Bramhall

Length: 14 hrs and 4 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,876

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,162

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,166

The times and species have been changing at a rapid rate, and the social compact is wearing as thin as environmental stability. Adam One, the kindly leader of the God's Gardeners - a religion devoted to the melding of science and religion, as well as the preservation of all plant and animal life - has long predicted a natural disaster that will alter Earth as we know it. Now it has occurred, obliterating most human life. Two women have survived: Ren, a young trapeze dancer locked inside the high-end sex club, and Toby, a God's Gardener barricaded inside a luxurious spa.

5 out of 5 stars

Atwood at her very best!

By
Linda Novak
on
10-18-09

Into the Forest

By:
Jean Hegland

Narrated by:
Alyssa Bresnahan

Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
155

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
141

Story

4 out of 5 stars
141

As America collapses in the chaos of war, pollution, and bankruptcy, two sisters pool their resources to survive alone in the hills above San Francisco. Although dwindling food and increasing isolation threaten them, they soon find a more immediate danger standing at their door. When a young man arrives, his friendship offers tantalizing fulfillment, but his love threatens to divide the sisters.

5 out of 5 stars

Different dystopia

By
Peter
on
06-09-16

The Passion

By:
Jeanette Winterson

Narrated by:
Tania Rodrigues,
Daniel Pirrie

Length: 5 hrs and 21 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
17

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
16

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
16

Set during the tumultuous years of the Napoleonic Wars, The Passion intertwines the destinies of two remarkable people: Henri, a simple French soldier, who follows Napoleon from glory to Russian ruin; and Villanelle, the red-haired, web-footed daughter of a Venetian boatman, whose husband has gambled away her heart. In Venice’s compound of carnival, chance, and darkness, the pair meets their singular destiny.

5 out of 5 stars

Excellence.

By
Scottie V.
on
10-07-19

The Topeka School

A Novel

By:
Ben Lerner

Narrated by:
Nancy Linari,
Peter Berkrot,
Tristan Wright

Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
463

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
396

Story

4 out of 5 stars
395

Adam Gordon is a senior at Topeka High School, class of ’97. His mother, Jane, is a famous feminist author; his father, Jonathan, is an expert at getting "lost boys" to open up. They both work at a psychiatric clinic that has attracted staff and patients from around the world. Adam is a renowned debater, expected to win a national championship before he heads to college. He is one of the cool kids, ready to fight or, better, freestyle about fighting if it keeps his peers from thinking of him as weak.

4 out of 5 stars

Strong novel about 1990s

By
citizen, jazzmania
on
01-11-20

Publisher's Summary

Winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award 2015

Day one: The Georgia Flu explodes over the surface of the Earth like a neutron bomb. News reports put the mortality rate at over 99%.

Week Two: Civilization has crumbled.

Year Twenty: A band of actors and musicians called the Travelling Symphony move through their territories performing concerts and Shakespeare to the settlements that have grown up there. Twenty years after the pandemic, life feels relatively safe. But now a new danger looms, and it threatens the hopeful world every survivor has tried to rebuild.

Moving backwards and forwards in time, from the glittering years just before the collapse to the strange and altered world that exists twenty years after, Station Eleven charts the unexpected twists of fate that connect six people: famous actor Arthur Leander; Jeevan, a bystander warned about the flu just in time; Arthur's first wife, Miranda; Arthur's oldest friend, Clark; Kirsten, an actress with the Travelling Symphony; and the mysterious and self-proclaimed 'prophet'.

Emily St. John Mandel was born in Canada and studied dance at The School of Toronto Dance Theatre. She is the author of the novels
Last Night in Montreal,
The Singer's Gun,
The Lola Quartet, and
Station Eleven and is a staff writer for
The Millions. She is married and lives in New York.

Dullest apocalypse ever

Nothing new here from post outbreak reimaginings of recent films. I'm disappointed with this esp as it made top ten lists of 2014.

Sort by:

Filter by:

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Rosalynde

07-20-15

Not just another dystopian novel

Would you listen to Station Eleven again? Why?

Yes. It was well narrated and very well written.

What other book might you compare Station Eleven to, and why?

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell. Perhaps because I read them back to back but it's another novel that transcends the genre by being character driven, therefore appeals to people who may not be fans of science fiction.

Any additional comments?

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Although the premise is a dystopian science fiction novel, Station Eleven is a character driven plot. The book switches back and forth between several narrators, both before and after society crumbles due to the onset of a massive flu epidemic. The characters’ lives all intertwine in some way or another, some straight away, others not until the climax of the book, but all their lives seem to have been affected by the movie star Arthur Leander, whose death marks the beginning of each of their journeys. The dystopian element of the book provides a background upon which each individual is shaped, rather than being the driving force of the plot, so if you’re not a fan of science fiction or dystopia, it really doesn’t matter because this is a book about people and how their lives interconnect in a world without modern connections.

10 people found this helpful

Overall

3 out of 5 stars

Performance

4 out of 5 stars

Story

3 out of 5 stars

Simon

10-10-17

Can't Quite Tune Into Station Eleven

I see I'm in the minority on this one! And I can see why people really liked it because it's clever, a little sophisticated and it's refreshing that the apocalypse - in this case a deadly flu - wasn't the main attraction. Instead it's used as a vehicle to engineer a quite unique past and present combination for the characters.

My problem was that I bought into the post-apocalypse story line in a big way but not the in-depth rendition of the characters in the normal world prior. That just didn't interest me at all. So, I ended up getting a much smaller dose of the part I was interested in.

All a matter of taste of course and I do very much see why others liked the book so much but the Hollywood Lives aspect of the plot was not something I could relate to. I wouldn't want to put people off because it's clever and a little original - I just wanted more of the Symphony and less of the overture.

11 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Norma Miles

09-09-15

A life, remembered, is a series of photographs....

It all starts with a single death, that of an aging, but much revered, actor, on stage during his performance of King Lear.it was a stroke or heart attack - natural causes, anyway. But behind the scenes a pandemic is growing, within weeks weeping away almost the entire population of the world. We are spared the gruesome telling of the deaths. Instead, the author weaves an intricate tapestry of lives before and after the depopulation event of people who at some point touched that of the actor, some intimately and others for only a few moments.This is an apocalyptic story like no other I have read. No zombies for a start. And almost without the graphic scenes of violence such a book would leave us to expect. Instead it is full of tensions, excitement, memories, friendships and fears of losing ones much loved. Of survival, too, and of hopes, dreams and a comic book. Because survival alone is not enough.This is a book which makes us aware of what we have and what could all be lost, what we value most, what we leave undone. And how, even in the worst of situations not only can still more be taken away but that there is also hope and comfort in the little things so easily overlooked in this, our present world of plenty.

A wonderful book, beautifully written, skilfully crafted and achingly memorable, all perfectly narrated by Jack Hawkins. As with the novel, I cannot praise his performance more highly.

27 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

C. Griffiths

12-16-19

Not my usual genre...but I was gripped immediately

What a book!! What an imagination the author has...I will definitely be listening to this one again!!

Listened during a long car journey a few weeks ago now and it's still in my head...and that almost never happens.

The narration is superb, the story intricate, pleasantly demanding and engaging, and the characters drew me in to a genre and scenario I'd not been interested in before...

It's a 'what would happen if....' story that's potentially all too real and the impact difficult to fathom...yet the author and narrator have combined to deliver a remarkably engaging story.

Highly recommend.

2 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Miss H L Jones

05-16-17

A refreshing change for the genre

I enjoyed this book from start to finish. The intertwining tales of the characters all had depth and emotion. It does not run chronologically, part flash backs and jumps through each character or groups but I never felt lost as can often happen with the format. The novel flowed beautifully. I particularly enjoyed that it delves into human behaviour & emotion, the light & dark sides of people and made me think a lot about regret. The human condition is undoubtedly flawed but this book left me feeling more positive for the unknown future & how there are more goodies than baddies out there! And no zombies!! Great narration too, pitch perfect throughout.

7 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Andy

12-03-16

What if...

Any additional comments?

Have just finished this a minute ago, and feel compelled to write my first review on here: Deep sigh; deep thoughts; it will stay with me a long while... This story and the narration have rendered me wistful and reflective. I am sad to say goodbye to this book. Survival is definitely not enough...The title and the thought of a post-apolcalyptic sci-fi story made me hesitate at first: Don't judge a book by its title! I'm so glad I ignored my hesitations and listened to this wonderful story - in two days! (My house is immaculate!) The title of course becomes clear in time and is completely fitting.Thoroughly recommended, will leave you thinking...what if...

14 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

mr

03-28-16

Intelligent Sci Fi really well told.

Firstly - it's a great story. It is a really fresh feeling Sci Fi with an engrossing female lead. It also has to be mentioned how good the narrator is. It might sound strange that I man is narrating a book with a female lead but it works very well.

6 people found this helpful

Overall

3 out of 5 stars

Performance

3 out of 5 stars

Story

3 out of 5 stars

kellyeleven

12-30-14

Well written but ultimately falls flat

The story describes life both before and after the georgia flu - a virus that wipes out life as we know it. This is where my opinion divides. The author describes modern life and all its trappings well, and I could really feel the fear of watching the world descend into chaos and then emptiness.

In contrast to this, the characters in the post apocalyptic story never really drew me in. The running themes that link the old and new world seem promising at first, but in the end it all just fizzles out.

13 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Andrew

10-04-14

Evocatively Portrayed End of the World...

Well not actually the end of the world, but the end as we know it. In my opinion Emily St. John Mantel writes about a terrifying (and yet wonderful and exciting* in its way) scenario brilliantly. The main characters - who's lives, past and present are intertwined in a series of flash backs and flash forwards - are well portrayed - and I cared about them. For once, an author who writes about "what if" as I think it really might be. Who considers the thoughts and feelings of people caught up in an event as huge as this. Initially numbed and shocked, but later somewhat desensitized. Well thought out consequences from the end of civilization as we recognize it. There are no zombies and only a little scary tension but this stands as one of my favorite books in the post apocalypse genre. Excellent!

I'd love more in this genre from Emily St.JM because she captures it so well.

Jack Hawkins' narration really is excellent - so much so I've started digging around to see what else he has been involved with.

* - As a bit of a misanthrope who despairs at what I see as the overpopulation of Earth by mostly uncaring mankind - at huge cost to the natural world and environment - there IS something uplifting at the idea of a planet with a tiny fraction of our previous numbers. I'm conveniently ignoring the suffering which took place to make the transition to that point.

17 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Wras

08-18-15

“survival is insufficient”

"The more you remember, the more you've lost,"A book with a difference and lots of heart and thoughts to share with it’s readers, a pleasure to discover and visit in the magical safety of our time. Arthur Leander an aging actor; is the center of this book and the first death in a story where 99% of humanity dies of Georgia Flu within days of his departure. Jeevan, a one-time journalist turned trainee paramedic was there at his death and gets the news of the epidemic, 20 year on he is a curator of humanities artifacts. Kirsten Raymonde, an 8-year-old actress is also present at Leander’s death, 20 years later she is a performer with the symphony that travels the post apocalyptic world. This coincidences and synchronicities are the structure of the book and is a thing of beauty to see how well Emily St John Mandel has constructed this novel.This is a meditation of our now through apocalips, a celebration of the everyday miracles of modern life, like electric lights, planes, the internet, medicine and all the other things and comforts we take for granted. A remembrance of things not past but ignored because we have them. But it is also a reminder of how stars use to light up the sky, and how the the world was wild and beautiful but unforgiving.

16 people found this helpful

Sort by:

Filter by:

Overall

4 out of 5 stars

Performance

4 out of 5 stars

Story

4 out of 5 stars

Denison

06-02-15

Good book if you dont think about it too much

It focuses on the characters rather than the post apocalypse. It sets them up quite well, but the payoff isnt that great.

There are some things that dont make sense (lack of electricity for 20 years), but it can easily be ignored.

6 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Kimberley

09-14-18

Brilliant

So well written and such great character , and not about the end of the world but so much more , full of life’s overlapping , wish it hadn’t ended .

2 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Emma

06-06-18

Surprisingly good

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It kept a nice pace and the character development was really good. I don’t normally enjoy this type of book but found the writing was great and enjoyed the characters and how it all tied together. The focus wasn’t on the actual apocalyptic event rather the aftermath for people. Loved it. Give it a burl

2 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

A. Gander

05-04-18

This story draws you in.

I read this book first and then downloaded the audio book a few months later. The narrator’s Canadian accent changed my perception of characters and events for the better and I was able to appreciate the story in a different way. I love the understated nature of the writer’s post apocalyptic world. The threats and dangers are there, but there’s a sense of hope that if civilisation ended, we might just find enough common humanity to form communities and reasons to live. I also loved the time jumps back and forth to slowly reveal stories. The interconnected plots felt realistic and never too contrived. I’d recommend this book to anyone.

2 people found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Amazon Customer

03-15-19

fantastic, emotional, intense

Station Eleven was a fantastic read/listen. The jumps around in time and place can be disorienting, and there are some characters that seem to bare no relevance to the story, and one character that was not well enough explained to be believable.

Overall, though, I loved it. The detail, the writing, the intensity... One of, if not the best tale of the end of the world as we know it.

1 person found this helpful

Overall

2 out of 5 stars

Performance

2 out of 5 stars

Story

2 out of 5 stars

Scott J Redpath

07-09-18

disappointing

First, it was near impossible to get past the narration. voice actor uses same inflection for all women and children, making them sound like they have a brain disorder. Broke immersion of the book everytime. As for the story, it hints at something interesting but ultimately missed the mark. there are so many characters and the time line changes so much it's difficult to keep track of what's relevant. I also found the main protagonist very anti climatic. Hints at an interesting world with an underlying message i just couldn't get interested in.

1 person found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Courtney Allingham

06-14-18

Undeniably good

This post plauge world is full of life and vivid characters that you can't help but love. A band of travelling performers and a past that is still so fresh but the world is different and there are new challenges to face. I haven't read a book so wonderfully gripping in so long. Jack Hawkins voice is smooth and easy to listen to and I'm a little in love. Interconnected through a past and a present these characters feel so real that I when I resurfaced, my eyes wet from tears, I felt like I had lost friends by finishing. Utterly brilliant writing.

1 person found this helpful

Overall

4 out of 5 stars

Performance

4 out of 5 stars

Story

4 out of 5 stars

Russty

06-12-17

wonderful words

a romantic account of the end of civilization, beautifully written and lovely crafted. but as a boringly practical person I found that myself asking "where are all the solar panels?!"

1 person found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Avril

02-18-17

I listen to this book a second time

I have recommended it to lots of other people loved every second of it. Got even more out of it the 2nd reading

1 person found this helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Willsy

05-19-20

Fabulous book, well written. good storyline.

Avoids trying to understand the what happened element of a plague and focused on the future. Interesting linkage of characters and sub plots. Highly recommended.